Eclipse watchers gather around the state Capitol./Photo by William Padmore, KLIN

Though Lincoln was just on the edge of the path of totality for the total solar eclipse, it drew thousands of visitors to view the eclipse.

Viewers gathered around the Capitol as well as Centennial Mall.

Kathy Johnson and her daughter Ivy drove from Boston to Lincoln to view the eclipse.

“My daughter really wanted to see the eclipse and we gave it to her for her 15th birthday present,” Johnson

Eclipse watchers were scattered throughout Centennial Mall in Lincoln./Photo by William Padmore, KLN

tells Nebraska Radio Network affiliate KLIN.

Nebraska residents also came to the Capitol area to watch the eclipse, including Courtney Lawton, a professor at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln didn’t have to travel far and says it was an incredible sight.

“It exceeded expectations,” according to Lawton. “It was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen in my life. Science; it’s incredible.”

The Lincoln Saltdogs baseball club held a special event to celebrate the eclipse. Total Solar Eclipse Day Game featured a break in action between the Saltdogs and Gary Southshore as

Fans at the Lincoln Saltdogs game view the eclipse during a pause in the action at Haymarket Park.

University of Nebraska – Lincoln science professors explained the eclipse via a video played on the Haymarket Park scoreboard. Then, the nearly 7,000 fans attending the game took in the sight of the total solar eclipse. The club said it sold tickets to people from as far away as New York, Florida, and New York.